Tobiah,
Nothing wrong with calling him "da Milano," although in actually
usage he's one of the few, like Michelangelo or Josquin, who are
frequently referred to by first name. We do say, "da Vinci." Yes, this
literally translates to "of ______," but place names were - and are -
common surnames. They happen in most European languages, i.e. the
French "de Visee," "de Gaulle," etc. Sometimes, the modifier might be
honorific or an indication of noble lineage; sometimes not. Anton von
Webern had to drop his "von" because of Austrian government regulation
following WWI.
The first part may be left off, but this is optional and largely
dictated by tradition. We usually refer to Giovanni Pierluigi as
"Palestrina" and seldom "da Palestrina," and it is more common to hear
of "Beethoven" rather than "van Beethoven" - which is actually a Dutch,
rather than German name. (Or you could go with "Ludwig van," like in a
Clockwork Orange.) On the other hand, one never hears about "Gogh"
without his "van."
Chris
Dr. Christopher Wilke D.M.A.
Lutenist, Guitarist and Composer
www.christopherwilke.com
--- On Tue, 5/7/13, Tobiah <[email protected]> wrote:
From: Tobiah <[email protected]>
Subject: [LUTE] Frank from Milan
To: "'Lute Net'" <[email protected]>
Date: Tuesday, May 7, 2013, 10:43 PM
Ok, my last college class was 20 year ago now. I thought
that I was told that "Francesco Canova da Milano" basically
meant "Francesco Canova from Milan (Italy)". I was reading the
surprisingly brief wikipedia article about the aforementioned
individual, and I came across this:
A composition called "Canzona by Francesco da Milano" (better known as
the song "The City of Gold") is commonly misattributed to da Milano.
So, if I am not grossly mistaken about my interpretation of the
entire handle with which we refer to the beloved 'Frank', then
I wonder if it can at all be correct to refer to him as
"da Milano". Wouldn't that be like one of you referencing
this letter and remarking that it was written by "From California"?
I expect much from the ever flowing fount of knowledge and wisdom
that is this list!
Thanks,
Tobiah
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